Both Ferrari and Renault are already on the bubble with two engine components having fitted new parts in China.
Charles Leclerc, Sebastian Vettel and both Haas cars will use a new control electronics in Shanghai with only two permitted for the entire year before penalties are applied.
It isn’t thought the change is related to Leclerc’s cylinder problem in Bahrain however, with that engine repaired and being used again this weekend.
Alfa Romeo, Ferrari’s other customer team, does not have any new components yet, although Antonio Giovinazzi only managed two installation laps in Friday morning practice because of a reported engine issue.
Also Read:
- Mercedes worry Ferrari engine advantage could be unassailable
- Renault hoping for quick upgrades to fix engine & chassis weaknesses
At Renault, the focus is on the MGU-K which has been redesigned and has been fitted to both works cars and Lando Norris at McLaren.
Nico Hulkenberg is also on to his second V6 unit, turbocharger and MGU-H as a result of his failure in the closing laps in Bahrain.
“They looked into it and they are working on it, working on reliability and getting on top of the situation,” the German told Crash.net.
“It is a pity as we lost a great result there. You’ve got to let it go and move on.
“For me, it was a failure on the PU side, the problem there [in Bahrain], that is why I am on to my second engine.
“Obviously earlier this year there have been several problems on the MGU-K side.
“Here all Renault engines are on the redesigned MGU-K so we are very confident it has taken care of the issues we’ve seen. There is further ongoing work to improve things.”
